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The difference between media planning and buying is that media planners select media to meet a client’s marketing goals, while media buyers negotiate the best media rates and purchase it. There are different steps to each part, here are 5 steps to media planning and 5 to media buying:

Media Planning:

1. Audience research: learn who your target audience is and how does it shift by medium. Since consumer behavior varies by demographic, planners need to identify which type of media will be the most effective for the specific marketing campaign.
2. Understand the market place: know what percent of the campaign will be devoted to display, search, and beyond. It is important to allocate the media dollars accordingly.
3. Pick your suppliers: you may have to send requests for proposals to suppliers you are interested in including in the campaign.
4. Guarantee inventory: work with your suppliers and allocate your budge accordingly.
5. Focus on client budgets: make sure you are complying with the authorized amount you are supposed to use for the campaign and track the authorized spend and planned spend.

Media Buying:

1. Identify your target market: Understand who you are trying to reach. Create a profile that reflects the consumer. Consider their demographics because that will be helpful when trying to identify the best venue in which to place the media.
2. Research your target market: Once you have researched their demographics, that can help you decide what type of media to buy. Remember to consider where you will find your target market and understand consumer behavior. That will help in placing a media buy that is effective and performs by achieving your identified goals for the client.
3. Set the goals: Once you set your goals, that can help you start the plan. These objectives should help you with your purchasing decisions and you can also receive input to make sure they are accurate.
4. Plan out the strategy: Know where you are going to buy the media, what outlets to focus on, what is the budget, and where you should allocate that budget.
5. Execute the plan: Now that you have done your research, set goals, and have the plan ready to go, it is now time to execute it. You want to contact the media outlets you have chosen and start negotiating your media buy rates. Once you purchase, keep track of the results and evaluate how your plan and strategy worked.

If you are interested in media planning and buying, contact Growth Consulting. We act as a support team to other marketing firms or directly with the client. Visit our website to learn more.